I know a bunch of storytellers who were more than just in, they were all over IT. And here are the stories they shared. It was an amazing slam, and yes, I remembered to hit “record” and there were mix-ups…well, one. I muted Amy Bee by accident in the middle of her story! Jeanne, my lovely pal and video editor repaired the glitch, and Ms. Bee isn’t holding a grudge. A little duct tape can do wonders…
We told angry stories telling of the inequality we’ve endured for millennia?
We told hopeful stories about what’s possible.
We talked about how patriarchy has systematically destroyed the planet, creating one war after another and leaving absolutely nothing good in its wake?
There was a story about an unusual dad, decades ago, who empowered his daughter to aim high and go after her dream instead of doing what everyone else does. She rocked the science fair!
We told stories about how we can raise girls and boys as equals, supporting creativity, encouraging strength and gentleness, heart and vulnerability?
There was laughter? Yes. Whether it’s laughter that turns to tears, or tears that yield laughter, we’ll be together sharing the stories of our lives.
If you couldn’t make it to the live slam this time, we’re delighted to share the full-length recording , or you can savor the individual stories one at a time.
At Wham! Bam! Thank You! Slam!, we don’t disappoint.
Thanks to all the people who joined us at our live event. You help us make this happen every month.
If you’ve got the itch to perform on our virtual stage you can sign up for a slam. You do have to be writer here on Substack, with your own publication website.
Watch the show in full, or scroll beyond it to see each storyteller’s video.
However you choose to approach it, enjoy!
Storytellers in order of appearance:
Dana is the author of The Uncluttered Mother. Since midlife, she has been discovering more and more things to let go of, including outdated beliefs and pesky self-sabotage.
Jane McGuinness is an author, psychotherapist, hiker, and former 1950s housewife who decided to set her world on fire beginning with her divorce. The blaze continues to burn this summer as this intrepid Aussie packs her life into a storage unit and sets out across the globe in search of adventure. She writes All Things Moderation, and published her memoir, Always Hungry, in spring of 2026.
Socially awkward, overthinking misfit who’s 6-word story was “found an island; burned a bridge” for most of her life. Turns out Amy Bee’s a late bloomer and now she’s burning down a lifetime of shame and guilt by telling true stories live onstage. She co-founded In a Nutshell Storytelling, WILDCARD story swap, and the Nutshell True Story Hour podcast because, and I quote: “FUCK YOU, MOM!”
Carrie Kaufman is a journalist, radio host, performer, pain-in-the-ass mouthy woman. She has done a lot, achieved a fair amount, and has little money to show for it. But she does have two kick-ass daughters who know their worth.
An essayist, sometime podcaster, and debut storyteller, Jane focuses on topics around aging, but in her head, she is younger than springtime.
Dina Honour is an American abroad, currently hanging her hat in the shadow of the Berlin wall. She writes books, essays, and excellent birthday cards. Her sub, American Woman, is home to essays about all things feminine. Meet her there and she’ll tell you a story.
Terri Sunflower’s song, first,
and then, her story.
TerriSunflower, a singer-songwriter and lover of words, waxes poetic on her Substack to muse and prattle on much longer than the average 3 minute song allows. Her songs, poetry, and stories capture her sense of place as a desert dweller, of coming out later in life, finding love and loss, the patriarchy and protest as well as such things as humoring the illusive need for rest and mastering menopause (as if!!).
Susan Kacvinsky is a modern mythologist flying her broomstick through the compost heap of the collective unconscious, gathering our most outrageous stories, and showing how they become our personal experience of life, and of course, the news. You know: our worldview. She can frequently be heard muttering: “How on earth do we still believe this shit?”
Amy Gabrielle is normally a peace-loving proponent of non-violent conflict resolution, except in the case of patriarchy, which should be killed like the motherf*cker that it is. While Amy’s preferred method of murder is by pithy satire, she proactively pleads the fifth, requests a lawyer and has an alibi. When she isn’t causing mischief and mayhem, Amy can be found writing at her kitchen table or doing a livestream to promote her new memoir, Widow in the City, A Memoir of Heartbreaks and Hookups. Available in our Wham! Bam! Bookshop, on Amazon or wherever you prefer to purchase your books.
Wyrd Sister has PhDs in feminist ranting, whimsical decorative cake theory, and procrastination with a minor in circumlocutionary storytelling (via the generous use of em dashes, Melvillian tangents––including parenthetical asides––and footnotes). She enjoys wearing pajamas in the afternoon and repeatedly reheating her forgotten half-finished decaf tea throughout the day while she writes. She lives alone (half the time) with her collection of malnourished houseplants (and the rest of the time with a feral 8-year-old boy).
Author, activist, and journalist. Soraya Chemaly is the author of Rage Becomes Her, The Resilience Myth and the newly released, All We Want is Everything. Would rather laugh and dance than cry. Petty is my middle name.
Professor Meredith is a historian, writer, and professional overthinker who spends an alarming amount of time yelling about gender, politics, and pop culture. When she’s not ruining nostalgic myths for the public good, she can usually be found talking about Star Trek, Taylor Swift, or why the past is never as dead as people keep insisting.
Mel Moseley is a storyteller, writer, actor, musician, mosaic/mixed-media artist, and fledgling witch at Mel’s Messy Love Lab. She lives with her black cat, Shadow, mostly off-grid in Fiddletown, CA. If you want to collaborate with her, the project has to include play, community, and creativity and Wham! Bam! Thank You! Slam! passes the litmus test!
Nan Tepper is the creator of Wham! Bam! Thank You! Slam! She’s memoirist-in-chief at The Next Write Thing. She styles stacks for writers on the Substack platform. She’s living her creative dreams, writing, designing, and being a kosher ham on stage. Her current obsession is making gifs, as evidenced by the animations sprinkling her websites. She recently discovered that she’s lusted for the spotlight since childhood, so now she’s making up for lost time! What’s your story?
Join us at the next live show on July 18, 2026 for Freedom or Fear? Because this July 4th, we’ll be celebrating (?) the 250th birthday of the United States, but lately, it feels more like we’ll be attending a wake or sitting shiva. Let’s do that together. We want to be free, and the key is to show no fear at all. Because that’s what want. They want scare us into submission. Fuck that.
The slams come packaged with all the feelings. There may even be a couple you haven’t felt before.
We’ve posted our 2027 theme calendar, and the rest of 2026 is coming with some surprises. There will be an announcement about new offerings, apart from the monthly slam. I’m so excited. If you watch the whole show here, you’ll get a teaser.
If you feel the urge to join us on our virtual stage, to tell your story AND you have a Substack publication, you can sign up for a slam.
There’s more than one way to support Wham! Bam! Thank You! Slam! Help us grow by spreading the word. You can buy a ticket to the show or if you become a paid subscriber (you get in to the live show for free).
Or you can sign up to tell a story.
We’ve obtained a fiscal sponsor, Fractured Atlas. Direct donations made in WBTYS’s name are tax deductible as permissible by law in the U.S.
Law? Do we still have that here?
Be a paid subscriber, because…
Or you can buy a ticket to any show.
The last few slam replays:
